Bryn Terfel - Interview by Philip Anson
/ December 1, 1997
Version française...
 Bryn Terfel's status as the most impressive young bass-baritone in the opera world today was confirmed by his recent performances as Wolfram von Eschenbach in the Metropolitan Opera's Tannhäuser. Mr. Terfel kindly granted La Scena Musicale a dressing-room interview at the Met the day after his second performance. (photo: Winnie Klotz -Wolfram in Wagner's Tannhauser, Metropolitan Opera, NY, 1997)
SM: Last week you were in San Francisco singing Mozart's Figaro and now you are tackling Wagner's Wolfram for the first time. Does such a quick change pose problems?
BT: No, because I know Figaro well and the roles are not vocally incompatible. I started preparing Wolfram long ago because there was practically no stage time and no rehearsals at the Met, just a week. Luckily I'm a quick learner. I watched the video with Berndt Weikl singing Wolfram and I learned a lot from it. Wolfram is a great role, lyrical and full of colours. There is none of that big Wagnerian singing which other bass-baritones have in other Wagner operas. Wolfram is a warm, calming influence, a good guy with human emotions. He loves Elisabeth and yet is sympathetic to his rival Heinrich. He's also the psychiatrist of the opera because everyone tells him their problems. It is a role I hope to sing often. I'd like to record it too, but the tenor would have to be Ben Heppner.
SM: Where did you acquire your acting skills?
BT: Good acting is about being as natural and calm as possible. These days producers have such definite ideas that you have to be prepared to do whatever they ask. In TannhŠuser Wolfram stands around a lot, so you have to perfect your small reactions to the dialogue. In Act 3 Sharon Sweet and I worked out the subtle interaction between us even though the audience might not be able to see it. For us it was important that it be believable in the smallest details.
SM: Is your family with you in New York?
BT: Yes. My wife and four-year-old boy Tomo usually arrive after rehearsals are over, when I have free days. Last night my Welsh fan club was here, 80 people including my mother and aunties. Many of them had never been on an airplane or to an opera before. TannhŠuser is probably not the best introduction to opera. I warned them to have a nap and not to tire themselves out with shopping before the show, or else bring a pillow! I know many people find Wagner boring, and I'm no different, but by not being pretentious I hope to make it accessible. Fortunately the Met is one of the best houses for a new public. Those cues on the back of the seats ["Met Titles"] are a great toy, they really help.
SM: What about Wolfram's harp-playing? That seemed very Welsh.
BT: The other singers were not playing much on their harps, but I figured if there are 80 Welsh people in the audience and Wales has the harp as its national instrument, then I better do my best. I asked the orchestra manager to make me a copy of the harp part for the recitative and "Wie tode sangen". Strangely, as soon as I tried to strum the harp I forgot my words and breathing. The harpist plays differently every night. I have to watch Jimmy's beat, listen to the harpist, strum and sing at the same time. Did it look all right?
SM: Where did you perfect your Italian and German diction?
BT: I competed a lot when young in Welsh folk song competitions, and the adjudicators were very strict about pronouncing the old Welsh poems, which was an excellent preparation for opera.
SM: Who were your teachers?
BT: I took masterclasses at the Guildhall Music School with Robert Tear, Rolfe Johnson and Ben Luxon doing English, German and French songs. I did a Handel masterclass with Emma Kirkby. For the last ten years my only teacher has been Rudolf Pierne. He is a superb pianist, conductor, linguist and a great singing teacher. He knows my voice and has looked after its development. I've been asked to give masterclasses to singers in young artist programs but I won't do it. A good pupil-teacher relationship has to be built up over time. I can't see the value of someone coming into the room for a few minutes and saying, "Look, you're doing this wrong." Anyway,I don't play the piano well enough to accompany and demonstrate.
SM: Your Broadway album is a best-seller. Did you like Broadway music in Wales?
BT: Sure, I heard Oklahoma and Carousel at the movies. I even enjoyed Elvis Presley films. Some people disapprove of crossover, but who cares? I just did a Christmas album with Tom Jones. My recitals always have a definite serious and light side - like it or lump it. Variety is the spice of life. Singers want to mix pop, German, English, and French songs. Audiences want it too, except maybe in Vienna. The first time I sang English songs in Vienna they looked very unhappy, though they liked my Welsh songs. Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote great music from the operatic point of view. They built a theatre to rival the Metropolitan Opera and paid a vast amount of money to get good singers. Now Deutsche Grammophon wants me to record an Irving Berlin album but I want to do Lerner and Loewe. I hope I'll get my way.
SM: What is the situation in the recording industry?
BT: The big labels have cut their recording schedules, but as soon as the right singers appear the operas will be scheduled. Conductors like Muti, Abbado, Levine, Gardiner and Thielemann will continue to lead important projects. Thielemann has just signed a contract with DG. Being from Berlin he'll want to record every Wagner opera under the sun. I hope to do about two recordings per year in the future. Next year I'll do another English song disc.
SM: Do you control the casting in your recordings?
BT: I have considerable input, yes. For example, when Sir Charles Mackerras withdrew from Elijah due to a shoulder operation I suggested Paul Daniel, a young conductor with whom I worked before and who has just taken over the English National Opera. I meet with a person from DG every two months to discuss repertoire, casting and conductors.
SM: Has fame affected your lifestyle?
BT: Well, I get to see the world and I just bought a house outside Carnarvon, Wales. My agent is very happy. I've been with her since day one, when I was earning just five pounds per night and now I'm earning a lot more. People think top singers are overpaid, but opera houses have a top fee, which is a good thing. Of course concerts are different Ñ everyone wants to make as much money as possible.
SM: What will you be singing in the future?
BT: My voice has settled into a very bass baritone, which suits Mozart and Wagner roles like Alberich, Wotan, Sachs, Dutchman, Leporello, Don Giovanni and Figaro. I will never be a Verdi baritone or a Sarastro bass. Boccanegra is on the horizon, Macbeth no, Trovatore no, Traviata when I'm older. I'll be doing the Rheingold Wotan in Munich in 2001. It is the easiest Wotan and I know it from when I sang Donner in Chicago. Falstaff is scheduled for Sydney, Australia in 1999-00. I've done Ford, so I know the opera. Falstaff is very demanding vocally but dramatically it is something to get my teeth into. I'm really looking forward to that. |
